Neil Gunn

Neil Miller Gunn was born in Dunbeath, Caithness, on 8th November 1891, the seventh child of nine. His father, James, was a fisherman and his mother, Isabella Miller, a domestic servant. Gunn left Dunbeath in 1904 to live with his sister and her husband in St John's Town of Dalry, Kirkcudbrightshire where he was privately educated. He sat and passed the Civil Service exams in 1907 and then moved to London. In 1910 he became a Customs and Excise Officer and held a series of temporary Highland postings. During the First World War his duties routing ships around minefields exempted him from call-up. In 1921 he married Jessie Dallas Frew (1886-1963) known as Daisy, the daughter of an Inverness jeweller. They settled in Inverness when Gunn was appointed permanently to the Glen Mhor Distillery.

Gunn published short stories throughout the 1920s. In 1929 he joined the SNP (Scottish Nationalist Party) and became heavily involved in SNP politics in Inverness.

Gunn’s first novel, The Grey Coast, was published in 1926, followed by Morning Tide in 1931. His novels deal with Highland life, particularly the disintegration of the old ways and the people’s adaptation to the new. Conflict between different societies and different groups within one society is a constant recurring theme in Gunn’s work: he deals with the impact of the Vikings, the tearing up of roots during the Clearances and migration from country to town in search of work. His final novels deal with the problem of violence in society after Gunn had become interested in Zen Buddhism. His autobiographical work, The Atom of Delight, gives an outline of Gunn’s philosophy. He did not publish any work for the last 21 years of his life.

Neil Gunn died on 15th January 1973 and was buried in Dingwall cemetery alongside his wife, Daisy.

In 1972 the Scottish Arts Council set up the Neil Gunn Fellowship.

In 1985 the Neil Gunn Society was formed.

In 1987 the Neil Gunn Memorial viewpoint was opened on the heights of Brae between Dingwall and Strathpeffer.

In 1991 a memorial sculpture was unveiled at Dunbeath harbour.

Publishing History

The Grey Coast - London: Jonathan Cape, 1926
Hidden Doors (Short stories) - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1929
Morning Tide - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1931
The Lost Glen - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1932
Sun Circle - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1933
Butcher’s Broom - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1934
Whisky and Scotland: A Practical and Spiritual Survey (History) - London: George Routledge & Sons, 1935
Highland River - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1937
Off in a Boat (Travel) - Edinburgh: The Porpoise Press, 1938
Wild Geese Overload - London: Faber & Faber, 1939
Second Sight - London: Faber & Faber, 1940
The Silver Darlings - London: Faber & Faber, 1939
Young Art and Old Hector - London: Faber & Faber, 1942
Storm and Precipice and Other Pieces (Selected extracts) - London: Faber & Faber, 1942
The Serpent - London: Faber & Faber, 1943
The Green Isle of the Great Deep - London: Faber & Faber, 1944
The key of the Chest - London: Faber & Faber, 1945
The Drinking Well - London: Faber & Faber, 1946
The Shadow - London: Faber & Faber, 1948
The Silver Bough - London: Faber & Faber, 1948
The Lost Chart - London: Faber & Faber, 1949
Highland Pack (Essays) - London: Faber & Faber, 1949
The White Hour and Other Stories (Short stories) - London: Faber & Faber, 1950
The Well at the World’s End - London: Faber & Faber, 1951
Bloodhunt - London: Faber & Faber, 1952
The Other Landscape - London: Faber & Faber, 1954
The Atom of Delight (Autobiographical) - London: Faber & Faber, 1956

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